Tentative farm workers deal in immigration talks

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A tentative deal has been reached between agriculture workers and growers, a key senator said Tuesday, smoothing the way for a landmark immigration bill to be released within a week.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., who’s taken the lead on negotiating a resolution to the agriculture issue, didn’t provide details, and said growers had yet to sign off on the agreement.

The farm workers union has been at odds with the agriculture industry over worker wages and how many visas should be offered in a new program to bring agriculture workers to the U.S.

But Feinstein said she’s hoping for resolution in the next day or two.

The development comes as a bipartisan group of senators hurries to finish legislation aimed at securing the border and putting 11 million immigrants here illegally on a path to citizenship, while also allowing tens of thousands of high- and low-skilled foreign workers into the U.S. on new visa programs.

The agriculture dispute was the most prominent of a handful of unresolved issues.

There’s also still some debate over plans to boost visas for high-tech workers.

The group of four Republican and four Democratic senators has been hoping to release the landmark immigration bill this week, possibly as early as Thursday.